In a history of the skid rows in American cities from the late 19th century until the urban renewal era of the 1960s, Ella Howard tells of the impoverished people who inhabited them and the policy choices that supported their existence.

A recent conference hosted by the American Institute of Architects in Los Angeles shined a light on efforts to reduce homelessness in Los Angeles—and demonstrated just how much work must be done nationwide to solve this humanitarian crisis.

One CEQA Reform Bill Advances; One Dies

CA Sen. Darrell Steinberg's bill to "modernize" CEQA unanimously passed the senate environment subcommittee. While SB 731 has no opponents at this time, it is suspected of being a means to keep the Kings NBA team from leaving Sacramento for Seattle.

Torey Van Oot writes how two bills to reform the state's landmark but now controversial environmental law, the California Environmental Act of 1970 (CEQA) fared in the state Senate Environmental Quality Committee on May 1. The bill advocating "a broader approach more strongly backed by business groups was rejected by the committee that approved Steinberg's bill Wednesday, with Democratic senators saying the (broader) proposal went too far." SB 787 failed on a 2-7 vote.

"The Legislature is quick to acknowledge CEQA is broken when a big stadium needs to get built but pretty quiet when a small business is trying to expand," the Twain Hart Republican said. "If you are a regular Joe anywhere else in California trying to expand your business you don't get much from this bill."

Steinberg defended his bill, stating that it is an attempt "to find the middle path" and promote infill development which CEQA has been charged with stymieing by some transportation and smart growth advocates. [See Planetizen, April 27 for more analysis].

In fact, the bill's title, "CEQA & Sustainable Communities Strategy" refers to the landmark smart growth bill of 2008, SB 375, also authored by the Senate President pro Tem, to better match transportation investments and land use patterns to reduce driving and sprawl.

“We can promote infill development, and set standards for elements like traffic, noise and aesthetics to limit them from CEQA litigation and bring more certainty to the process,” the senator stated in his press release, which notes that the bill received support from "California business, environmental and labor groups".

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